


Hyacinths & Roses (Game of Sorrow and The Heart)

by imfromspace, Melonmellow, notreaaallythatmindfularentI



Series: Canvas [1]
Category: Banana Bus Squad, Real Person Fiction, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Backstories & Flashbacks, Basically before Luke had Died, F/M, Flower references, Fluff and Angst, Gang & Magic, Government Agencies, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Major Character Injury, Multi, Promises & Betrayals Happens All The Time, Sorry Not Sorry, The President is just an Easter Egg, The Special Prologue for Colors of Reality, a vibe of Far Cry 5 at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-18
Updated: 2018-05-18
Packaged: 2019-05-01 05:09:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14513229
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imfromspace/pseuds/imfromspace, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melonmellow/pseuds/Melonmellow, https://archiveofourown.org/users/notreaaallythatmindfularentI/pseuds/notreaaallythatmindfularentI
Summary: One mistake, one incident will result into numerous deaths.Two valuable gifts needs to be hidden to the people that inhabits the world.But Luke knows that it won't be long before the countdown ends to 0.The Enemy had started playing the game and everyone is gonna be involved.And He made a choice by doing it alone, but he made backups for it."It's better to fix your problems alone." Luke said to himselfBut He didn't know his choice affects the world's normal routine.





	Hyacinths & Roses (Game of Sorrow and The Heart)

**Author's Note:**

> Melly here! and this is my birthday special for you guys!  
> I figured that it's a good addition to the story if we made a snippet in Luke's POV himself before the main fic happened.  
> Yes, the backstories or flashbacks are important to take note too (if you are willing to theorize about the storyline)  
> but we didn't gave away all the hints but it's enough to build up the bandwagon for the upcoming 12-15 chapters.
> 
> Thank you for my author friends that inspire me to keep going (KUDOS FOR SKYE FOR THE MEANING OF THE TITLE AND THEIR MEANINGS)  
> To the readers who got intrigued to this mystery story  
> See ya guys soon!

Warm fluffy blankets and different shapes of pillows were scattered in every part of Luke's body as he sighed contently in the softness before fluttering his dark eyes open. It was morning, as he figured by the sunlight going straight through the silk white curtains. The five of them decided to make a pillow fort (Jonathan’s idea) for cuddle and movie nights.Since all of them has work and most likely it's Jonathan who was left at the household or at the shop making artworks for his clients. It's like a tradition, like the shooting stars with his deceased girlfriend, Jane(Jon's sister), but this time there are more people into the pile and it reminded them that _they_ are a family.

The agent smell a scent that make his stomach rumble with hunger. _It's breakfast,_ his mind supplied as Luke slowly rose through the comfortable nest that he was in. Couches and chairs were stacked in a way that the pillow walls won't fall on top of them.The white silk curtains decorated with Christmas lights were tied nicely with the wall hooks. Stuffed toys that represents them (and an army of teddy bears) were scattered on every part of the fort as if the non-living softness are protecting them from the outside.

_Away from everything and everyone._

“Toonzie?” A grey rabbit plush has been poking Luke's cheek.

“ _What.”_

“Food.”

Luke groaned and smack his head on the pillow, “I know, but the bed is co-”

“Comfy as fuck, yeah.” Ryan giggled, still poking the older with the bunny. “But you have work and all. We prepared some hearty stuff for you.”

“Hearty like a handsome man I am?”

“Yeah...Yeah whatever. Just get up, man.” And they helped each other and went to the kitchen where the wonderful smell that makes Luke Patterson’s mouth water.

**Bark Bark!**

Luke and Ryan stared at the fluffy brown dog,Poochie that was yelping happily at them. They remembered that they also have pets as part of their lives. Since Ryan and Bryce work at a veterinary shelter before.

“Let's go, buddy. Your breakfast is already there.”

“Who are you talking to, Ohm?”

Ryan’s hazel eyes glimmered with mischief. “Both of you, _bitches._ ”

“The only bitch in this house is Poochie.” Luke petted the brown dog, Ohm gasped and nudged him on the ribs, but he didn't care. “Am I right Jonny’s princess?”

**Bark Bark!**

“Good morning!” Three familiar voices said in sync as the agent seated at the dining area, where plates filled with heavenly food were placed in style on the oak wood table. Jonathan was pouring coffee for each white porcelain tea cups. Bryce continued what Ryan had been cooking, who was kissing his tall blonde boyfriend, and Mark happily gave him the fresh newspaper and fed the brown dog on her respective spot in the room.

“Good sleep?” The dark-skinned man asked Luke, who comfortably seated at the head of table.  
  
“Best sleep in weeks, maybe months.” Luke replied, watching the other three sat on their respective seats, while Bryce finally laid the last piece of pancake on a platter (like a spin-off of iHop) and turned off the stove. A vase of fresh cheery purple with yellow johnny jump ups on the table, providing the “happy thoughts” vibes that Bryce said to have.

Jonathan beamed and happily poured some maple syrup on his pancake. "Thanks to me, that i propose that sleepover and gave you, Mr.Patterson a recharge of energy to the amount of overtime you did!”  
  
“Yep.” Luke ruffled the smaller one's raven hair, which Jonathan accepted (he likes affection, _seriously_ ) “Thank you, li'l bro.”  
  
“Welcome!” said the painter as he jabbed the fork on the small cut piece of food into his mouth.

They finished their meals in a peaceful silence that Luke missed. In a normal work schedule of his, the agent take-out a baguette _for_ Evan. , a friend and a recognized detective on the field had given him, when they meet-up for new and ongoing cases.Screaming and angry conversations around him left the older one frustrated and in a bad mood at the beginning of the day. So, the Canadian preferred for the two of them to meet-up on the Central Park or at the office, so Evan could avoid the “ **Southern Devil** ” that Luke has been called by the co-workers throughout the years of work.

  
An angel’s voice brought him back to reality.

 

“So...Luke,” Bryce started, clashing of plates was heard. The others went to their respective routines while the blonde stayed behind, cleaning up the mess and watching the other. "You gonna meet Evan at the Park right?”  
  
“Hmmm? Oh yeah,” Luke quickly gathered himself, trying to help Bryce in the dishes but instead earned a look of _“Don't stall for time and meet the famous guy!_ ” So, Luke surrendered and went to shower, trim his magnificent beard, and clothe, and then he grabbed the worn red jacket that had stitched horns on the head of the hood (He loved it to bits) and raced to the front door.  
  
**“Hold the fuck up!”**

Luke whipped his head around to see his lil bro, Jon with hands on his hips. The American was still in his sleepwear with a bird nest on top of what should be his hair. "You leaving without any hugs?”  
  
“Oh noooo.” The taller man dropped his jacket and hugged Jonathan, lifting him up like he was a teddy bear. "I forgot _you_ crave for this piece of ass”.  
  
Jonathan slapped him in the shoulder “I ain't needin’ _your_ old ass!” But they giggled nonetheless, engulfing the scent of hyacinths from back home.

“Oh right, you like this Canadian that i’ve been talking about _and_ I'm gonna meet him today _and_ not you."  
  
“l **don't** need nobody!”

  
Luke snorted, spinning the other around. "And you also like this client of yours that bribed you in a gentleman style and gave teddy bears for your collection”.

“Adam is _just_ a friend, Luke!” Jonathan defended, pulling away from the hug. "Besides, I haven't met this _Canadian-that-i-seem-to-like_ that you keep hooking me up to.” The painter realized what he had said and looked at the smug look of his older bro.”A-are you trying to matchmake **me** ?!” Jonathan blurted out, the red color start spreading on his pale cheeks.  
  
“Oh shit look at the time”.The bearded man looked at his wristwatch and slowly stepped backwards. "Call you later, brother dear.”

  
**“LUKE COME BA—”**

Jonathan was restrained by hugs from the boys, as the painter demanded to continue the conversation. Ryan just winked at Luke and mouthed ‘Go’ then started tickling the captive victim. Bryce and Mark joined and lifted Jonathan up and carried him to the fort. He could hear the happy bark of Poochie in the background.  
  
_‘Can't believe these dorks are my family.’_  
  
Luke waved and blew raspberries at the disappearing figures, as he opened the door knob and closed the door. Shadows tailing him through the early rays of sunlight as his black shining shoes hit the concrete pavement.

A pair of blue glowing eyes blinked in the corner and followed.

 

“Fashionably late as always?”.  
  
Fresh cold breeze of the wind splashed into Luke's face as he tucked his hands into the red jacket’s pockets .The Canadian was slurping his own coffee while handing Luke's on the other free hand. The place was just a few streets down to the Central Park from Jonathan and his house, and also had a special place to Luke's heart.

“You know me, Evan.” The agent grabbed the hot beverage and slowly sipped. The richness of the coffee beans warmed the chilly feeling in his stomach from the wind this morning. It was the start of the raining season, so more car accidents would definitely happen on the slippery chip seal roads either via the road being wet _or_ drunk irresponsible adults.”I'm too res-”  
  
“-ponsible and taking my damn ass time to get here”. They both grinned at each other since that statement was said a hundredth of time, and Luke honestly didn't care much that he was repeatedly saying it, because those excuses were pretty much the summary of how to explain his roles in this lifetime.

  
They both sat in a comfortable silence, draining their coffees and forming the words for the conversation they needed to discuss.

“It's been awhile since my last meet-up with you” Luke started, throwing the empty cup of coffee to the bin. "Is your side good?”  
  
“They're safe, if that's what you asking."  
  
“After what I did back then I thought…”.  
  
“That we split up after that?” The agent looked at Evan’s chocolate brown eyes, remembering the mistake he made.  
  
Luke Patterson is just a human; he also made mistakes.Despite living three personas at once, there were always chances that one role would fallout and can be used against him.  
  
And that's how the “Incident” was made, Luke remembered the pain instantly.

  **  
****_“HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME CARTOONZ?!_ ** _” The veterinary lady who hooked up Bryce and Ryan, who also knew magic, wailed at him with a pale corpse being hugged carefully in her arms._ __  
__  
_He is a Necromancer of the Difendere, the one who resurrects people from the dead. But not even a Necromancer can resurrect the fellow member’s wife from her sickness. She died.He only resurrected people who died from a battle, to raise an army and fight for them. Luke couldn't make the lady's wishes done since it would make that peaceful look turn into a mindless zombie, and they would be a handful to clean up._ __  
__  
_“I'm sorry." He said, trying to comfort the now-widow woman, but instead she lashed out at Luke and began threatening him._ __  
**_  
_ ** ****_“Watch yourself, Luke. You don't know who you messing with.”_

 _After that day, Luke knew he had a countdown clock on his head for getting killed, by not doing his duty. A huge storm of disappointment looks and ‘_ **_i’m not staying here anymore, i quits'_ ** _came up at the following weeks. The group’s numbers decreased, and rumors of failure kept reaching to him._

 _Then Evan and his ‘family’ decided to take a break from the incident too and disappeared like ghosts._ __  
  
_Luke thought that his own family would abandoned him too. Fortunately, he was forgiven and accepted, but one person remained clueless, one that he had been protecting for so long. The agent couldn't just tell Jonathan._

 

“We made some time for you and the others to recover on the um...incident with Krism.” Evan continued as he twirled a strand of his styled hair. "Besides I can't leave everything we made behind after _one_ death”.  
Luke calmed himself, to not cry (he tried) and hugged Evan immediately. He heard a surprised gasp from the famous detective since the other didn't usually hug people out of nowhere.“Thank God, I thought i’ll lose another person and more people because of me.” The bearded man sniffed.

Evan sighed and patted the older man’s shoulder, knowing the other needed the comfort. He was impressed Luke had stayed strong within those months they left. "I’m not leaving you again, not even your family. We’ve been fixing crimes together, might as well fix our mistakes and move forward.”  
  
“Y’know what? I always fucking agree.”They both pulled away from the hug, and decided to spent half an hour, catching up to the months they missed. Chattering away their problems from the people or just life itself.  
  
The sun shone and hid behind the thick gray clouds. The wind started to get strong and swayed the trees, the shrubs of pink and purple rhododendrons dancing beside Luke.  
“We should go.” Evan eyed the pink and purple flowers.The white-striped crimson red jacket he wore had lost warmth after what Nogla had told him about it.

 _“Rhododendrons meant ‘danger’, Evan,’ Nogla lectured, while they are in his greenhouse, showing different kinds of plants and their meanings, carefully holding a piece of the flower.’so be careful around them, it might be a bad omen.”_  
  
“What why?” Luke asked the detective, who stared at the flowers beside him.  
  
“Just….trust me, okay?” Evan stood up and lend a hand to the older man, which Luke accepted easily. They decided to go to the base of their home, where magic was safe to use and share, **The Difendere.**

A pair of blue glowing eyes blinked by the tree and followed the two.

 

  
Luke mumbled to himself, as he glanced at every corner they had turned from, to see if there was someone following them. Fortunately there’s none and it left the agent a little at peace. He felt a **presence** nearby but he knew that **he** was friendly so the agent didn’t bother.  
  
“You okay?” Luke just nodded slowly, waiting for Evan to open the door. “You’ve been a bit skittish...since the last time i saw you.”

“It’s been months and after those news about the Mafia killings….” They entered the base and locked the front entrance. Turning the light switch, the darkened room is now illuminated with pretty lights shaped in different crystals known to humankind. If criticized, one could tell that it was inspired like the witches living in the 60’s. The interior design was made like that, for the magic was contained only within this base. "And I’ve been protecting the others from them. I don’t want them to get endangered from my mistakes.” Luke continued, while searching for his laptop and the package that the government had sent him years ago from his own hidden compartment. Moving to the living room where they sat on the couch and the agent placed the package on the oakwood table with a _thud._

  
Evan eyed the package as Luke opened it and showed the detective what was inside “What’s this Luke?” The Canadian asked with a hint of curiosity in his tone.

“It’s from President Brad,” Luke started, pulling out a silver dog tag necklace and a well-burnished box that has an engraving of an eye. "This is one of the things that I’ve been hiding from you guys.”  
  
“Why? Aren’t _we_ trustful enough?” The tone made Luke anxious but he calmed himself.  
  
“No one knows this exist...except you” The agent opened it and the box contained a raccoon figurine with its tail straight up in the end.” Cute isn’t?”

“Luke Patterson, the Necromancer of Difendere, the CIA Agent of Los Angeles and the guy who keeps hooking me up with his mysterious brother,” Evan started, with a serious looking face as he pointed at the raccoon figure. “Can you _please_ fucking explain why would President Chair Thrower would give you this?!”

  
“Damn, you don’t need to do a speech like that to me,” He stifled a laugh while holding the figurine in front of Evan.  
  
“Just answer the question!”  
  
Luke responded by pulling out the trash panda’s tail and revealed that it was actually a flash drive. "This was only made compatible on my laptop, so no matter where it was plugged, it wouldn't become readable. The firewall will never crack”.

“What's inside of it anyways?”  
  
“A program they called **The Eye** ”. The agent started explaining while he put back the flash drive back into the box and leave the silver necklace on his lap. "It was a very very dangerous program that if they went into the wrong hands… **BOOM!** ” He animatedly said with hands and startled Evan, which Luke had snorted about despite being glared out after that.  
  
“ **Boom**! As in BOOM-END-OF-THE-WORLD?”

Luke nodded slowly and raised the silver dog tag necklace on Evan's face. "You see this necklace? I’ll give this to you for safekeeping.” He put it on the detective’s hands firmly, the other was examining the engraved numbers on the dog tag.

“It's for the laptop isn't it?”  
  
“Oh! Detective Fong, how good you are~” _Oh there the eye roll went._  
  
“But why me? It can be Mark, Ryan or Bryce,” Luke saw the confusion in the brown eyes of Evan’s.

The countdown is decreasing and Luke had planned out everything for everyone he was close to. And this was one of the last things he needed to do on his To-do list before anyone fucked it up.The agent didn’t want his family to be harmed because of this one mistake.He remembered what President Brad had told him when they met privately.

 

_Luke was feeling nervous as he sat in a comfy chair inside of the famous White House. (How did he deserve to come here, he doesn't know). The room was simple for a president’s office._

_He looked up, and walking towards him was his excellency himself. Luke abruptly straightened up in his seat, wanting to appear professional, but the president only sent him a charming smile, told him to make himself comfortable and patted his dog, Chubbs. The president sat at the other sofa before Luke. A clear table, ornamented with a pot of different varieties of chrysanthemums, was separating the two of them._ __  
__  
_“Sir? Why did you call me?” Luke started the conversation._ __  
__  
_“I have a secret mission for you, Luke”. The kind president has said, blonde hair swift perfectly into the side and electric blue eyes stared at him with determination. "And I have specifically chosen you to do this.”_ __  
__  
_“I have reviewed your records and also considered the praises I have heard from the bureau.” The president smiled. “They’re quite proud to have you in the team.”The President gave him a big box, that later revealed inside was Luke's laptop, and other equipment. And lastly, the USB drive in front of the agent._ __  
__  
_“Take good care of them.”_ __  
_  
_ _“Why me, sir?” Luke asked carefully, not wanting to fuck up nor fake his emotions at the same time. "But there are many many people more capable for this job and technically more badass than me, your local_ **_Southern Devil_ **.”

 _President Bradley chuckled while he pet his dog companion. "I’ve seen people—those people, who are capable of doing the job, play tricks on me. Adding up their salary and shit just to satisfy their lives with a simple task at hand.” He responded, looking at Luke in the eye. "I have people that I believe in, but I know I can't always count on them for these kinds of things, for they also have responsibilities towards other things. I chose you to protect a new decoded program inside of that USB that is only compatible to this laptop.” Brad patted the expensive laptop. Black and red glowed amazingly in the design._ **_"Think about it as a key to the lock.”_ ** **_  
_**_  
_ _“Why not bury it somewhere safe?”_

_“It's a great idea to be honest.” The blonde male agreed, smiling when Chubbs yelped happily, poking the table with his paws. “But the enemies are quite smarter than you think. I find it difficult to entrust this to anyone. Not even to the people that are entrusted to protect our people. It is not beyond me that we are compromised from the inside and sooner the Eye will be found”._

**_“The Eye?”_ ** __  
  
“That's the name of the program inside of that USB, so keep in mind that it's important. It's basically the motherboard to the core and it won't be fun if the bad guys found out about it.”

 _“You don't call yourself a bad guy?”_ __  
  
The President laughed, “Everyone has a bad bone in their bodies, but I just want to protect the people from harm as much as possible as because it is why they had voted me. And I know, Luke Patterson that you also want to protect what belongs to you and what is right.” He patted Luke in the back, muttering a ‘good luck’.

**_“It's either you want to be a hero, a coward or a villain or just a tryhard like me.”_ **

 

  
‘After this safekeeping with Evan, I would go back to my family and enjoy my remaining time’. Luke said to himself before he spoke again, trying his best not to show his weakness in front of the younger one. "Remember the lullaby I taught you, for Jon?”. A nod had been done. “Then keep in mind that this one, is for the entire humankind, not for you and not for me. It's for the whole world”.  
  
“For the whole world”. Evan repeated that to himself and put on the dog tag necklace on his tan-skinned neck, feeling the coldness of the metal.

“Thank you, Evan. I know I can count on you.”  
  
“It's the least that I can do, considering on how much you helped me." Evan told him, smiling nervously. "You were the one who taught me the ropes on how to survive in the field. You also help me strengthen the bond of my family.”  
  
“Don't start getting touchy on me man, _I'm not dying_ ,” Luke timidly laughed, and he felt Evan’s worried glance at him. "No seriously, Evan, it’s the best plan that I can do. Each one has different tasks to do, different responsibilities for a cause.”

“You sure love playing games, Luke.”  
  
The agent put a smile on his face and rolled his dark eyes, nudging the Canadian gently. "Who doesn’t want to play games? We play video games with the boys on our free time.”  
Evan sighed and stared at the painting of white and black poppies at the walls. He had this feeling that he couldn’t put a finger on to what’s wrong with Luke’s behavior. _Was it because of the incident? Or Was it something more that the older man haven’t told about?_ "I didn’t mean that kind of game, Luke.” He watched Luke’s relaxed face becomes gloomy and sad. Luke raised his hands to move the little skeleton figure at the table from a distance; it moved gracefully like it was living, _a puppet on strings._

“I know....I know.”

 

 

The clouds started to become gray and the wind is going strong for it seemed to suggest rain. Luke cursed to himself as he forgot to bring an umbrella like Bryce had been advising him. He had no choice but to use his favorite jacket if he didn’t make it back home. He decided to try and talk to the President about the safekeeping mission he was doing for years and about backing out from that

 _‘That's probably a bad idea,'_ Luke sighed as he went back to the Central Park, excusing himself from Evan. He couldn't tell everything, he wished he could, but it would harm anyone who would know the full story.  
  
And he didn't want it to happen.  
  
The street lamps flickered to life as the skies slowly gets darker and darker from the horizon, waiting for the cry of rain to pour into the earth. People started to retreat for shelter, but Luke sat down on the same bench that Evan decided to sit on to. The rhododendrons danced with the wind as the agent contemplated his next move. For Luke had one more job to do, after the safekeeping of the lock with Evan, he only needed to hide the key, buried or given to anyone. The small box suddenly became heavy in his jacket pockets.

He brought out his phone and tried to call Jonathan (since he checked his lil bro out when he had free time) and waited for the giggly voice to be heard in his ears. But instead he got the busy tone of the painter’s voicemail after many times of recalling the other.

  
_“What's up? I'm Teddy the lovable bear! Please leave a voice message and I will send it to Jonathan Dennis when he came back.”_  
  
  
“Jonathan,” Luke started sighing as he look at the skies, thinking if he could just bury the box at the promise tree. The biggest tree in the center of the park, where legends say that every secret can be buried there. "I wanted to check up on my little bro! I'm guessing that you have your favorite client there in your shop, making another work of art from your talented hands.”

Luke smiled at himself as he remembered how Jonathan inherited the creativity of his mother and the way his father made every canvas alive.The secret of the Dennis Family. But the sad blue eyes stayed and Luke tried to keep the other happy, because he lost a _lot_ of people. Despite the three of them meeting in the fields of purple hyacinth, he wanted to change it to sunflowers or heathers just to prove to Jane that he took care of him until his dying breath.  
  
“Just wanted you to know that I fucking love you, brother. I know I sound sappy sometimes but it's the truth. Someday I'll tell you the whole story of what I've been hiding you from since the beginning. I know it's confusing but just trust me...yeah?” Tears welled up in his dark eyes. "You will find this family we have to grow more and you'll be happy if you meet them soon." He gave his last words in a more calming way as he ended the voice message.

“See ya later, Jonathan.”

  
He put away the phone and cupped his face to collect his bearings .He had tasks he gave to his family, two important and dangerous things to protect from the Mafia: _Jonathan and the Eye_ . He could do this one more task left.  
**  
****Hide The Eye.**  
  
In the corner of his dark night eyes, Luke swore he saw something lurking behind him and whipped his head around to see nothing. His heartbeat thumping loudly in his chest.  
  
**“You looking for me?”**

The agent didn't look back and ran, but he could tell that a pair of green eyes glared at him and that their pawns were catching up to him.

  
  
Luke ran across the open area, barreling past people with faces hidden by the umbrellas they held. He heard their cry of protest as he pushed himself forward. He didn’t stop and just fought forward with the increasing persistence of the raindrops. Luke didn’t want anyone hurt so he hurried forward. Until he heard a gasp of shock and gunshots resounded through the air. The cries turned to horror and people in front of him was suddenly turning away, no longer crowding in his way. Still, Luke didn’t stop, didn’t turn around, not even to make sure no one was shot. All that matters is that he keeps the box away from these people. He ran toward the cluster of trees, the orange leaves now dull, pairing the dark sky, flattened by the steady pour of the rain.

He turned sharply, past a couple of trunks before exiting in a narrow pale bricked path before

jumping over another cluster just on the other side. Luke turned left in an instant, digging his shoes on the soil he was running on. He jumped over the fences when he decided it's time to do so, hearing nothing behind him as he stubbornly ran, refusing to listen to his tiring body.  
  
He came in view of the fountain area and the crowd of people surrounding one side of it, the benches empty. He panted, stopping just near enough to observe the confusion of the people, bustling under the rain, seemingly tense. He noted the suspicious look some gave him, wary of a lone person running around, getting soaked. He watched as one kid pointed at him, tugging at some guy wearing a navy blue uniform. A gruff face came to look at Luke.

A police officer.  
  
The agent came stumbling down the concrete hard. A sturdy body smacking him from the side, going down with him. Luke struggled, pushing the man on top of him, trying to get him off. He whipped his head to see the officer also struggling, a man holding him in a headlock from behind. The crowd scattered, kids being pulled away. Everybody panicking, some calling out for help that wouldn’t arrive sooner.  
  
Luke pushed himself away from the one pinning him down, raising his foot and dropping it straight down, smashing the head of his opponent against the ground. He struggled to get up, scraping his arms and knees against the concrete. He wiped the blur of the rain off his eyes, seeing the guys  after him catching up. He turned around and ran. His soaked clothes feeling like a baggage. He ruan around the fountain, following the dispersed crowd of people, hoping to confuse his enemies. He felt the side of his jacket, grasping it tightly.

He didn’t manage to avoid being spotted. Someone shot him at his left leg when he was not paying attention. He cursed, limping between the screaming people running off to every direction. He’s thinking he made a mistake, saving himself using the crowd. He doesn’t want anyone to get mixed in to his troubles and yet he’s seeing all these persons getting injured in the stampede and all he could do was grit his teeth.  
__  
_All these,_ he thinks. All these for a godforsaken flash drive.  
  
But he couldn’t abandon his mission, his job. There should be a reason the president entrusted this to him. Surely, something good will come after all this. He couldn’t lose focus and let his emotions take over. Not right now. Luke grabbed the box and shucked off his jacket, letting it fall off. He reached out and leaned in to a woman near her.

“Wha-?” The woman pulled away slightly, shocked.  
  
“I’m sorry.” Luke whispered, feeling the numbness of his shot leg. “I just need some help, _please_ .”  
  
The woman nodded and let him to anchor himself against her, escorting him to walk.  
  
He limped, clutching the box in his hand. He heard the thundering of raindrops against the woman’s umbrella. It’s less intensified. In a few minutes, the rain will let up. Luke contemplated about what he should do next. He couldn’t entrust the eye to someone else easily. He couldn’t just chuck it behind trees either. He frowned. He didn’t have a lot of options, and he still worried about the enemies. They’re still looking for him. Luke still needed to be on the lookout for them.

They stopped in the midst of the crowd. Luke peered in the middle and studied the altercation brewing in the middle, between a citizen and a guard. He listened as he scanned the surrounding people for anyone he should be wary of.

  
“We need an ambulance.” The citizen was saying. “ **ASAP** . Do you not see all these injured people? Where’s the police? What’s taking them too long to just get the fuck in here?”  
  
The guard cut in. “I’m sorry. Please, we’re just asking patience. We’ve already called for respondents. They should be getting here any minute now-”

The argument was reduced into garbled sounds, as Luke blocked them away while searching among the crowd and spotting a man with a white dog that what he assumed was a Golden Retriever. The man was crouching, holding the dog close to him and stroking its back as he surveyed the scene silently.  
  
Luke eyed the man more closely, studying the man’s guarded form. The man had his hair to the side, puffed out and slightly curled at the ends, and wore a grey fitting shirt, black pants and combat boots. He seems to be paying full attention to the tension upfront.

  
Luke detected something… odd with the aura of the man he’s looking at. It's something unusual, unorthodox compared to the surrounding people. It’s different. But the agent felt that it's nothing unfamiliar to him, something he knew well enough that it didn’t feel unusual anymore. He just couldn’t put a finger on it.

 _‘Is he the one i was looking for?’_ He asked himself as, Luke moved closer to the man. _‘Is he the one I would give the Eye for? Can he carry the responsibility on his shoulders?’_  
  
Luke knew the man couldn't carry that much responsibility, and he was still a complete stranger to the bearded man. But he could feel the determination flaring into the man’s eyes.

They made eye contact, and it crept the hell out of him. As if the man knew his intentions by just staring into his dark eyes. Hopefully, Luke wished that this guy was just as ‘normal’ as he looked, but the agent instincts said otherwise. Splashes of water could be heard from his shoes, through the puddle that resembled the dark brown color of the man’s eyes as Luke approached him with difficulty.

  
“You shouldn’t be moving around with that wound.” The man said in a dark smooth tone that could make any women swoon pointed out the blood stain on the agent’s pants.

Luke leaned himself by the body of the ambulance. Sirens were ringing loudly in his ears.”I don't have much time left so, I might as well do what I can still do.” He replied, wincing at the pain at his leg.  
  
“Like protecting that something in your hands?”.  
  
Luke clenched tightly the box and clear his throat. "Yeah, and I was wondering if y-”.  
  
“No”.  
  
“Just hear me out man.” He tried to continue, heart beating faster as the countdown on his head, which was slowly nearing to 0. The Mafia will catch him soon and it would be game over. "The whole world will be thanking you, if you agree to take responsibility of this”.

“I know you mean well….CaRt0oNz,” The man continued while petting his dog. "You're a good person, but I don't want to get involved in this world responsibility thing. I have my own responsibility to take care of.” Staring at the shock look of the other. "And so are you”.

  
“How do you know my other aliases?” Luke slowly questioned him, trying not to be intimidated by him. Preparing himself. "And who are you?”  
  
“You can call me, **Markiplier** ”.  
  
“We're using code names huh?”

Markiplier smiled kindly, while his puddle-brown eyes sparkled dangerously. ”Her name is Chica." The white dog shook her fur from the pouring rain, barking happily at Luke  
  
“Nice to meet you two.” Luke smiled back at them, remembering Poochie back home. The two could have been friends, Jonathan would be happily take good care of them, plus Ryan’s pupper, Buddy. _‘It would be so much promising,’_ the agent thought to himself as he sighed at the possible scene. He also thought if Evan or Adam could make his little bro happy.(Or maybe both? Time will tell and Luke wouldn't judge him), Because his heart still belongs to a girl that was on a painting, but Luke also knew that there was _someone else_ who it beat for now.

 **BANG!**  
Both of them were startled at the gunshots, and the big crowd was screaming, frantically scrambling away from the park, going to safely away from the danger, away from them. Then one of the black-clothed had almost seen Luke, if he wasn't got shoved to the side of the ambulance. He didn't have time to screw around and think for what was possible—he needed to keep safe of the flash drive,  so the world would be safe as well. He needed to keep his family safe, Jonathan’s fu-  
  
**BANG!**  
  
“Toonz, calm down now."

A blood curdling scream went through his soul, of a person who died for him, of a person who didn't know they were getting sacrificed to a man like him, who was hiding for cover, clutching at a box that no one knew existed. Luke didn't want more lives taken because of _him_ .  
  
“Too-”.  
Luke shoved the raccoon flash drive out of the box and shakily handled it to Markiplier. "I’m sorry, but...I” Tears continuously flowed through his sockets, as his heart beat rapidly, as if it would jump out of his clothes. He only had one plan in mind, and it's the most risky and stupid to do, but it would lessen more corpse falling down the pavement and the guilt brewing hard in his body. "Please take good care of it. **The world needs you**.” And he bolted out in a hurry. Almost forgetting that he got shot as adrenaline took over and his magic ready to use to his limitation. And clutching the empty box in hand as the Mafia had finally spot him when he stumble out of the damp street. Green Eyes staring through his soul.

 **“IT'S HIM! HE HAD THE EYE! BRING HIM BACK TO ME!”**  
  
Luke never stopped running, even the rain of bullets hadn't stopped the agent from hiding to the cars, went inside of stores and blending into the sea of people as he hustled through each person, casting a spell that summoned zombies nearby that heard his call. The zombies tried to distract both Mafia and the innocent in hopes Luke could get away. Unfortunately, a black van was slowly catching up to the agent despite the commotion. He managed to reach a huge garden maze in the middle of the city.

Yellow and black roses were displayed on every corner of the bushes, dancing softy to the breeze. The skies were still dark and the rain had reduced its tears from pouring into the earth. The smell of petrichor hung into Luke’s nose strongly as he strolled around the maze, catching his breath and nursing slowly the wound on his leg. Bryce taught him some tricks on being resourceful if he didn't have a med kit by his side and only Nogla’s plant knowledge on plants and herbs that could be found in the wild.

Luke chewed leaves from a plant, while he cleaned the wounds through the rainwater. He sat by the hedge, spontaneously looking side by side for any threat. Tearing a part of his sleeves, as the chewed leaves has been applied on the wound, despite it being a grazed it did hurt like a bitch, and it took him a while (and some magic) to stop it from bleeding that much. Luke smiled bitterly at himself. He finally finished his last task, and the last thing he needed to  do is to come back home and spend the last minute with his family (even Evan's family too) before the last count hits 0.

  
He plucked a yellow rose from one of the bushes, feeling the softness of each petals. Admiring its beauty from within. Luke could still feel his presence nearby, and he felt safe and happy that someone was looking up for him. His left eye itch at the thought of a magical being he’d known for awhile.

In Jonathan’s eyes, **He** was a nightmare and a mistake, but for Luke, this magic fellow needed understanding and hope they would be accepted. If only Luke can prov-  
**  
****“Where are you, CaRtOoNz?~”**  
  
_‘Shit,they found me’_ Luke silently cursed and started to get moving again around the garden maze. He could hear screams in the background and gunshots.(Probably the magical fellow) had been distracting them for awhile, and Luke honestly owned the beings a favor. But now it's not the time to think about it, Luke needed to _live._

 **BANG!**  
  
Luke seem to have reach the middle of the maze, where a beautiful gazebo and a huge garden of different kinds of flowers and plants. He carefully limped around and tried to admire the view while he went around, finding another route to the exit. He could still feel the screaming from the distance and focus on what's ahead. A thunder cracked and lighting blocked out the noises. Luke was still holding the yellow rose, its thorns pricking his skin. He turned around a corner to find a group of men going to his route so Luke backed off, returning to where he had gone through and turning to the other corner instead. In the middle of his journey a pair of hands grabbed him sideways and the agent went through the hedges.  
**“You think your shadowy friend can stop me?”**

 

Luke blinked and he was staring up to the glowing green eyes (is he even a man? cause the eyes are too robotic for him) The man’s neck has a faded stitch across and a shit-eating grin plastered on his porcelain skin makes Luke want to punch it and erased it from existence.  
**  
****“Where’s the Eye?** ” The green-eyed asked him.  
  
“You can't get it from me, bitch”. Luke spat on his face.  
  
The bitch (yeah that’s what he will be calling the lunatic) laughed and whistled to the air, then suddenly a pair of heavy arms were lifting him up. Luke could feel their hands finding the box. The green-eyed smiled when he found it, putting up the box on his face.

 **“Game Over.”** And opened it  
  
What happened next makes Luke laugh as the bitch look at the box with a confused look and shook the box out as if it had secret pockets, but nothing appeared but an air of false hopes. The gasp of the men in black clothing added it better.  
  
**“Don’t you fucking laugh at me! Where is it?!”**

  
Luke smiled, “It's gone and you’ll never see it.” _Never again_. He felt victorious that they didn't found out Markiplier and his dog on the way, meaning he had succeeded on his task.At Least it was safe, his family safe and that only matters to him.

 **“You answered me wrong. You shouldn’t have done that.”** Then Luke got kicked in the stomach and spat blood. **"You made a mistake fighting with the El Victoire.”** The green-eyed smiled and whistled again, he could feel a cloth blocking his passages of breathing and Luke inhaled a sweet scent that he knew would knock him out temporarily. It made him dizzy, and he saw life flash before his eyes while staring at the raging rain from the dark grey sky. The thunder roared louder, the screams increased in volume.

 

 _Luke has seen Jonathan happy, angry, sad and broken at the same time in a familiar place under the household with...Evan? The painter was blocking a huge canvas behind those small arms. He heard heard either wailing or giggles escaping from the painter’s mouth._ __  
__  
_Then the scene changes..._ __  
  
He was back into the fields of purple hyacinths, the place where it all started. Meeting Jonathan and his family of ancient magic. And meeting his fated girlfriend who died, leaving him with her little bro in training of fighting the bad effects of his inheritance. Luke remembered the treehouse that was filled with their pictures together, the three of them on an adventure.

 _But now the place was foggy and deserted, like the dead promises of them being solid forever, and now Luke think he would also fail Jonathan. The agent strolled around and reached the treehouse where he spotted a girl in a ponytail. White butterflies surrounded her while she was barefoot on the soft grassy ground._ __  
__  
_“Jane?”_ __  
__  
_Blue eyes stared at him lovingly, the eyes he had grown attached to. If Jonathan was the deep blue sea filled with mysteries, Jane was the bright blue sky that radiated warmth and happiness._  
“Luke…” She wore a white familiar dress, the one she wore at her funeral. "It's not your time, please go back, go back to Jonathan and the others.”

 _Luke blinked heavily, remembering the chloroform on his nostrils, feeling sleepy he dropped into the ground. The purple hyacinths circled him and went through the breeze. "I'm sorry Janey, as much as I want to fight back...they caught me.”_ __  
_  
_ _Jane’s blue eyes filled with sadness and tears, but she smiled and cupped his cheeks."You did your best. You are my hero,_ **_our hero_ **.”

Luke blinked wearily as he slowly closed his eyes; he felt the pair of heavy arms dragged him into what he thought was the black van that was following him earlier. The world was safe as long as the two precious things he had were buried and hidden into the world. If things went badly, Luke knew the people he had ask favored for this mission who would act and protect them. They would protect one another like the family he and Evan built. _The dynasty that wouldn't break and nothing ever made._

  
Luke finally closed his eyes and let the darkness engulfed him, despite the enemy won the game of hide and seek. They would never find what they want easily. For Luke Patterson, was the mastermind of this game, sacrificing himself was just one thing. The yellow rose was left on the muddy ground as the black van roared to life and left the garden maze. The dark clouds wailed and cried more tears as the media went through the Central Park, reporting the damaged properties and injured people who got involved. A man who ran from the scene with his dog, the flash drive dangling on his chest with silver chains to be secured from anyone who dared to touch him. A Canadian who walked back to his family completely unaware to his partner getting kidnapped and Luke’s brother who was silently waiting back at the pillow fort while watching the pouring rain, waiting for a person that would never come back into his life _ever again._  
  
Back at the garden maze, a pair of blue glowing eyes glared at the rose and follows the black van.  
  
**The Game had just started.**

**Author's Note:**

> NO REGRETS AT ALL :D


End file.
